Football & travel for the big tournaments: World Cup, European Championships, African Cup of Nations, Confederations Cup

There are certainly a whole host of coaches that spend their entire careers in their home country, not venturing far and enjoying varying degrees of success. Failing to cross borders however is an entirely foreign concept for Stephen Constantine. The 47-year-old England-born coach's resume reads like the itinerary of a fascinating trip to exotic lands, but though he may be something of a football nomad, this is a manager who has enjoyed success wherever he has travelled. A serious knee injury ended Constantine’s playing days quite early (he was 27), yet he was able to transform that disappointment into a positive and make his mark as a top-level manager. Having coached four national teams including Nepal, India, Malawi, and Sudan, Constantine's views on the world’s most popular sport are quite interesting to say the least. Now in Cyprus as boss of APEP FC, Constantine is excited to be back to the daily grind of club coaching, though the club's current situation is quite difficult as APEP were recently issued a points deduction and have been condemned to relegation to the Cypriot 2nd division for next season. This has not dampened Constantine’s spirit though. Speaking on his personal website , Constantine stated that he was looking forward to the challenge of rebuilding the team and returning it to the 1st Division. Though he may have seen it all in his travels coaching football, this is a man who has an unquenchable thirst for the game. He describes himself as a firm believer in constantly improving his knowledge and skill. This desire to learn has helped Constantine succeed and the former Chelsea schoolboy player has made a habit of taking over struggling sides, making them competitive and in some cases winning trophies. Even when conditions have been sub-standard and the support not quite where it should be, Constantine has managed to overcome the numerous obstacles by focusing on the task at hand. One Game, One World was lucky enough to have Mr. Constantine sit down and answer some of our questions. His views on the way the smaller teams in world football are treated are honest and eye-opening. Constantine’s insight into football at every level are a must-read and his experiences are refreshing. Read the interview below on a coach destined for more success in the future regardless where the football winds take him. One Game, One World: Tell us about your youth and playing career. Stephen Constantine: I had spells at Chelsea and Millwall as a schoolboy and then at 17 signed for AEL in Cyprus before heading over to the USA. I played for the Pennsylvania Stoners in the ASL and for New York Pancyprians before an injury ended my career at 28. When did you realize that you wanted to get involved with coaching? I was about 26 and had coached a few youth teams and was helping out here and there and realized that this was what I wanted to do once I ended my career. I had already taken youth coaching courses so when I had to stop at 28 I had already began the transition. What was your first job as a manager? How did you do? I had spells with Apollon and AEL youth teams, but my first job in sole charge was at Achilleas Ayio Therapon and I managed to keep them in the 4th Div, they were in last place when I took over and 12 points adrift so it was a tough job, with most of the players older than me ! I was 29 years old. How did you enjoy your time in Cypriot football? Like everything else there’s good and bad stuff, I won the Youth Cup with AEL at U16 and that was an amazing time, several of those players went on to the senior team and National teams as well so that was very pleasing. Keeping Achilleas in the league was also good, as for the bad well we are talking about 11 years ago so I have managed to forget the bad things! How did you get into the running to become national team coach of Nepal? The English FA recommended me as well as a number of others and the Asian Football Confederation picked me from the list of about 25 others. They then sent the list to the Nepal FA and I guess they liked what they saw. Did you enjoy that experience? Under what conditions did you work there? Fantastic experience and the people of Nepal are wonderful; we had a great time on and off the pitch, truly a memorable time. Conditions were tough as you would expect from such a poor country, but as someone who is adaptable you just get on with the job at hand. Was your time as India national team boss successful? What is the football potential of this country? Yes it was, we won India's first trophy in 42 years and did very well at all levels in my time there. Potential is there, it just needs a little more time and some things need to be changed. We often had crowds of 60,000 at our games and against Japan in a World Cup Qualifier we had 100,000, so that should tell you everything. How did you find the Malawi job? Very difficult, people did not look long term. Everything was if we did it today fine if not then never mind, no planning at all. Can you describe the infrastructure there for football? It was almost nil to be honest, as I said no one wanted to look ahead and although there are some great players they are let down by corrupt officials and it’s a great shame as there are some people who want to work but just not allowed. Explain the process of you being selected to be manager of Sudan? Sudan came as a result of my FIFA work where I had done some courses a few years ago, and when they were looking for someone to step in I got the call. Considering what has been happening in Darfur and other parts of the country, what are were working conditions like? They were ok to be fair and we had most of what we needed, of course there were problems but that’s part of life. The people in Sudan are very warm and really did support me in my time there. How would you rate Sudanese footballers? Some great players, it’s the same all over Africa and Sudan is no exception. Was it difficult to work with the Sudanese government? How was your relationship with the government and the Sudanese FA? Excellent and excellent. I was dealing with both obviously. The FA was who I worked for and working for Dr Kamal Shadad was great for me, he is a great man and it was sad for me to leave. As for the government again my dealings with them were excellent and I can’t complain. Do you enjoy the globe-trotting you have done as a football manager? Yes, I love it ! Do you prefer coaching at the national team level or at the club level? I would say club level as I am involved every day and really do enjoy that as opposed to a game every few months. Are there any other places around the world you would like to coach in? Yes, I would love to coach in South America and Australia that would mean I would have coached in all six continents. Is there a dream job that you haven’t landed yet? LOL, plenty of them, it seems I do get offered the really tough jobs that not many others want, but am happy to be working in the game and love what I do so as long as I have a team and am working just about anywhere is ok with me. How long do you plan on coaching? As long as I still have my love for the game, which is I guess until I breathe my last breath. Hopefully I have a few more years in me as there is plenty of things I would like to achieve. What career goals have you succeeded in achieving? What remains for you to achieve? Every job there is a new challenge, if you asked me 12 years ago would I have coached 4 National Teams, won trophies with them and seen some great games, become a FIFA Instructor, I would not have believed it possible. Getting honored by the King of Nepal was special and unexpected to say the least and I hope there are more special moments to come. Who is a coach/manager(s) that you style yourself after or have always admired? There are many coaches that I look up to and have had the pleasure of meeting a few of them. I think I have my own style and as someone who is always trying to improve I think that will always be the case. So a little something from many of them I would say. Who are some of the best players you have coached over the course of your career? Well, that's a difficult one to answer there have been some many to be honest though perhaps not well known for people in Europe. Can you name some of players that you admire from world football? Patrick Vieira, Fernando Torres, Thierry Henry, Lionel Messi, the list is endless. What are the biggest challenges that some of the smaller nations face at the international level? Being treated fairly by match officials, it is always the case that the bigger teams get more breaks than the smaller teams and this is a problem. Games should be officiated in the same way no matter who is playing. Where do you see yourself five years from now? Well I would like to think coaching in a top league in Europe. If you were handed the power, what changes would you make to football, either at international or club level? First thing I would do is have instant replay to help the referees, it’s done in so many other sports it’s about time we have it in football. If a referee, coach, club official, or player is caught gambling or cheating in a game he should be banned for life. Players who ask for other players to be sent off should be shown red cards. Make the Champions League for the champions of each European league, and have the Europa Cup for the 2-3 placed teams. I would also add a European Cup Winners’ Cup for all the FA Cup winning teams as well. In all major club and international competitions throw all the teams in the hat and have teams come out naturally, no more seeded teams to help the bigger sides not meet each other, it’s so stacked against the so called little teams it’s not fair. Where will the next generation of great footballers come from and why? Africa, they are hungry and football is the only way many of them can feed their families and when you have that motivation anything is possible. The other reason is in Europe we coach the life out of the players from an early age. How do you see the 2010 World Cup shaping up? What will be the quality of the football on show? Africa deserves the World Cup and I am hopeful that they will do a good job, of course there will be problems but FIFA are working very closely with the powers that be so that if there is a problem they will hopefully be in a position to sort it out early. Will African teams perform well do you think? That's the question I think a lot is being made of, the African teams doing well and it remains to be seen. The teams that qualified for the World Cup didn’t have such a great showing in the recent African Nations’ Cup so we will see. What qualities are needed to be a football coach at the highest level? An in-depth love of the game and understanding of the human mind is for me key, an awareness of everything around you. Technical knowledge, recognizing the need to have a quality back-up team from the assistant to the physiotherapist is also key to your success. Having attained your coaching qualifications are now a must but it's a lot more than that and your personality is also something that must be right. What changes in tactics and formations have you seen over the course of your coaching career? Any major shifts you have noticed? This does make me laugh sometimes as we see on TV all these wonderful permutations of a 4-4-2 suddenly someone says no it's a 4-1-3-1-1 or what ever seems to be in fashion at the time. Of course we have what are now called the standard systems such as the 4-4-2, 4-3-3, 4-5-1, 3-5-2, 5-3-2 and you can always effect those systems by pulling a player deeper or pushing him more forward. At the end of the day it's about the players you have, can this player get up and support the lone striker? Does the defensive midfield player got the qualities to play that position? If a coach knows the game and gets the players to implement what he wants from the particular system then does it matter what system you play? It's all about the players you play in the system you want and of course the information the coach is able to give to the players. Why is football the most popular sport in the world? For me "because on any given day anyone can beat anyone else." Unfortunately, we are losing sight of this as I said before the bigger teams are always kept apart in the draws be it club or international level and if there is a 50/50 decision against a small team the bigger side will get the advantage, that needs to stop. What does football mean to you? EVERYTHING, it's my life. Find similar stories like this at the blog One Game, One World . If you want coverage of all things football big and small and stories off-the-beaten path then please visit One Game, One World for a unique look at the beautiful game. Tags Soccer News football

J.League Results Saturday & Sunday, 6-7 March Omiya Ardija 3 Cerezo Osaka 0 Vissel Kobe 2 Kyoto Sanga 0 FC Tokyo 1 Yokohama F Marinos 0 Gamba Osaka 1, Nagoya Grampus 2 Jubilo Iwata 0 Vegalta Sendai 1 Kashima Antlers 2 Urawa Reds 0 Kawasaki Frontale 2 Albirex Niigata 1 Sanfrecce Hiroshima 1 Shimizu S-Pulse 1 Shonan Bellmare 1 Montedio Yamagata 1 Bet with Bet 365 World Soccer News Soccer betting tips Soccer Books & DVDs Tags J-League Results

RANGERS They are so far in front they are virtually over the horizon and out of sight. Yet despite their dramatic Old Firm winner on the last day of February which put them ten points clear of their bitter rivals, and with a game in-hand to boot, manager Walter Smith and his players are sticking to their guns that there is nothing to celebrate just yet at Ibrox. There was an outburst of emotion at the end of the Old Firm game at Ibrox. A winning goal in injury time is always provocative, but the response was an indication of significance. Satisfaction ought to be enduring. The season remains poised for Rangers, though, as success is possible in all three domestic competitions, but not guaranteed. “We’ve not won anything yet,” says Steven Whittaker, the full-back. “We’ve still got to follow it through.” The doubt is novel for Rangers, as all three of the club’s title wins since 2000 have been achieved on the final day of the season. The emphasis now is on avoiding complacency. There is familiarity in encountering Premier League opponents at least three times in each campaign, but other factors are also relevant. Almost every side in the top flight still has something to play for. Fixtures against the Old Firm also tend to raise spirits. No game should be considered elementary. “That’s the Old Firm, we’re used to that,” says Smith. “But you get to this stage of the season and there’s a lot at stake for the teams. Our league gets a bit of criticism, for being so small and playing each other four times, but it does bring a situation at the end of the season where there’s no easy matches. The majority of games have a bit of meaning to them. I always stress to the boys that at this stage of the season, a wee bit of an extra edge comes into it for everybody concerned.” The mood at Rangers is one of denial. Points have been accrued through sheer force of will at times this season, but they can still be rendered worthless. David Weir and other senior players have already prohibited loose talk in the dressing-room. Assumptions about winning the treble are considered hazardous. The pursuit of honours can be gruelling, but the hardship is necessary. “You need to try to forget about the position you’re in and concentrate on the points that are still available,” said Whittaker. “We still need to continue on the winning streak we’re on. It’s in our own hands and we need to keep putting pressure on the rest. We all know what’s at stake, we all know what it’s like to win a championship, we did it last season. The motivation is there to do that again.” There is little respite for Rangers; midweek fixtures will exert a strain on the squad. Injuries might still imperil the team, but Smith can at least take comfort from the current clean bill of health. Even the international week proved obliging right after the Old Firm game with 13 Ibrox players off on international duty around the globe. Meanwhile, through, Smith has lambasted all referee talk in the wake of a month in which the men in the middle have come firmly under the spotlight. In the build-up to February's Old Firm game, Celtic leaked it that they had complained to the SFA about the standard of officiating after they felt a catalogue of decisions have gone against them so far this term, three of which have happened in games against Rangers. Their complaints appeared to backfire with Scott Brown harshly dismissed at Ibrox and the subsequent appeal thrown out. Rangers, though, were at the centre of another storm when St Mirren boss Gus MacPherson then claimed Weir ought to have been sent off and Smith's patience snapped. "Everybody wants people to get ordered off and everybody wants penalties against us,” he claimed. “Everybody wants everything against us at the moment. "I don't know what road we are going down in that respect. I didn't see much in it myself, I've got to say. “We seem to be reaching a ridiculous stage where refereeing decisions are actually becoming far more important than the game itself." Smith also spoke out following last weekend's Old Firm derby triumph when he criticised the unnamed Hoops source who revealed the club's unhappiness with decisions which they felt had gone against them this season. The Ibrox boss added: "Everybody starts talking about the refereeing decisions but it's a game of football. "Refereeing decisions good, bad or indifferent have been part of football for a good number of years. When I started, Jim McLean, Alex Ferguson, Jock Stein - they all moaned about refereeing decisions. I moan about them. Everybody moans about them. "But now, in Scotland, it seems to be going into an area where it's taking on far greater significance. "Your team has got to be good enough to overcome them. As far as referees are concerned, they make their decisions and we've got to get on with it. "Referees in every league in the world are under scrutiny for the decisions they make. "Now, in ours, it's every weekend that we are playing it's becoming the referees who are influencing games. It should be players and managers who are influencing games. "The better the job we do at it, then the better our teams do. I moan at referees' decisions, and I have done over my career, but I think it's reaching a ridiculous proportion in Scotland at the moment and it's not giving the referees the proper opportunity to do their jobs." Amazon.co.uk Widgets SCOTLAND The irregular rhythm of international football has not come easily to new Scotland boss Craig Levein. The Hampden boss got his regime off to the ideal start with a 1-0 friendly win over the Czech Republic - the first time Scotland have won a friendly match on their own turf for 14 years. In fairness, the Scots rode their luck a little but an opportunist goal from Scott Brown kept up the feelgood factor in the national side. Levein took the win in his stride and is now looking ahead to massive overhaul of the Scottish game, from the roots up. “I have a lot of players to watch and games to see,” he said. “This summer is going to be busy. I am not going to the World Cup but there are lots of friendlies on. And I haven’t even touched on the whole structure of the youth thing.” Levein’s main modus operandi as a football manager is to be more thoroughand methodical than his opponent. But he discovered last week just how limited a Scotland manager’s time with his squad actually is. He issued players with detailed DVDs focusing on every player in the Czech squad, and will expand that programme in the future. But he is so fearful of bombarding players with an information overload in a short space of time that he has had to hold himself back. “There is a temptation to get overly excited, and say ‘Lets do this, and this, and this’,” Levein said. “I have to rein myself back a bit. Although I haven’t had a game for three months, some of these guys have had three games in a week. It was a very important moment for me, but in a way it was just another international friendly for them.” That is why the ones who will be given the summer off are the playersthemselves. It was confirmed last week that Scotland’s next assignment will be in Sweden on August 11, with Levein having knocked back a friendly or squad gathering during the internationalweek in May. He feels that limiting Scotland sessions safeguards their importance. He hopes that allowing the players to focus on their holidays in the summer is a trade-off which may help them return to action refreshed and enthusiastic in time for the twin double-headers against Lithuania and Liechtenstein in September, and the Czech Republic and Spain in October. “The UK leagues are the toughest in the world,” Levein said. “I feel that physically the amount of fixtures, the conditions you play under, and the tempo of the games, more than take their toll on the players. So I made a decision they would have from now until the summer off, but we have four games in September and October, and I want them fresh and ready to work hard. We need to put in a similar effort but also add that little bit more quality and composure to our play.” To this end, Levein still has decisions to make on how players unavailable last week, such as Shaun Maloney, Kris Commons, James Morrison and Kirk Broadfoot might fit into the jigsaw. The Barry Ferguson issue has been parked until the summer, when further discussions between will take place. Chief scout Michael Oliver’s unprecedented player search has turned up a few other options for the future, with the SFA refusing to give up on Newcastle United striker Andy Carroll. Ideally, Levein will be in a position to add real quality to his squad and build on the confidence gained from the victory over the Czechs. The pluses outweighed the minuses on Wednesday,but it was a close-run thing. One such positive was the result itself, and a clean sheet against a side who Levein feels are strongest “middle to front”. Individual displays from Graham Dorrans, Charlie Adam and Lee Wallace suggest they are more than ready to make an impact during this campaign. Scott Brown weighed in with a winner and another mighty display for his country. There was also the maturity shown by the Scotland crowd over the return of Kris Boyd and the performance the player produced. On the other hand, however, was the realisation that a Czech side without Petr Cech, Milan Baros, David Rozehnal and Zdenek Grygera got the better of the Scots for large swathes of the game. Star turns included Tomas Rosicky and Jaroslav Plasil but there were no real surprises for Levein. “There weren’t any of them who we thought ‘oh we will have to give them more attention’,” Levein said. “But if we are going to beat them in either of the qualifying games we will have to play well, our defenders will have to be very good and our goalkeeper will have to be good. The Czechs might have better individuals, but the team and the work ethic are worth more than 10 places in the world rankings. The question is whether they can be worth more than 20 places in the rankings?” While Levein was celebrating a win in his first game in charge, his chief scout, Michael Oliver, was spying on Spain , whom Scotland face in the Euro 2012 qualifiers . “Michael told me they were the best team he had ever seen, and that we shouldn’t bother turning up.” Back to earth with a bump then. CELTIC Celtic and the SFA have gone to war. It all began with a Celtic 'source' leaking a story to the media in the frantic build-up to February's Old Firm game about a Parkhead complaint to the game's governing body over a lenghty list of complaints they believe have gone against them this term. Both previous Old Firm games were cited in the list, the first when Celtic were denied what was a stonewall penalty at Ibrox in a game they lost 2-1, the other in the game against Rangers in January when they were denied a goal from Marc-Antoine Fortune, a match they went on to draw 1-1. In between times we a couple of offside goals against Falkirk and Dundee United that TV cameras later proved to be legitimate. Celtic drew both of the games. However, the furore that greeted their complaints ensured that referee Dougie McDonald was under intense pressure going into the third Old Firm game at Ibrox at the end of the month. The game was an hour old when Scott McDonald and Kyle Lafferty tussled and the red card was waved in Brown, the Celtic captain's direction. It seemed a harsh decision and the Parkhead side went on to lose a game they really needed to win with a goal conceded in the dying seconds of the game. The celebrations from the Ibrox dugout told their own story with regards to whether or not they really believe the league title is not over just yet. Celtic's appeal was then thrown out by the SFA, but the simmering resentment on the part of the Parkhead club continues to linger. In truth, they have been undone this season by a combination of desperately poor finishing in games they have dominated, while at the back they have have toiled desperately defensively. So far this term Celtic have conceded an astounding 29 SPL goals. They have not been helped by a string of poor refereeing decisions and it is no slight to say that Scottish whistlers have had an appalling season, not just when officiating Celtic games but in an entire host of matches where blatant mistakes have been shown up. Yet, it was the actual appeal process which so rankled Mowbray. “Who was the appeal to?,” he said. “My frustration is that the same referee who has made the decision on the day has another look at it and the matter is finished. “It doesn’t seem much of an appeal. If you appeal something, then you want to do so to an independent body. But that is not the case here. “I didn’t know the process before we went into this. I thought we would appeal, someone would have a look at it and think, ‘yeah, maybe the referee got that one wrong’, without going over the top of the individual or wagging a figure at him. “If it gets thrown out by an independent panel then you say, ‘fine, we all move on’. It just seems harsh to me that the guy who makes the decision is then asked to make another decision.” Mowbray said that he had watched the video of the Brown-Lafferty clash on four or five subsequent occasions, and he remains convinced that McDonald made the wrong decision in sprinting across the Ibrox pitch to brandish his red card at Brown. “I’ve watched it back and I can’t see a sending-off,” the Celtic manager said. “Even if you think I have a level of bias because I work for this football club, I still can’t see a sending-off. As a guy who looks at things honestly, I can’t see what he [Brown] has done. People have said to me that it might be a headbutt, but is there a headbutt? The crime of feigning a potential headbutt might be more of a crime than what Scott Brown did. If you can sit there and honestly believe Scott threw his head towards at him and that his headbutt was a violent act, then fine. I have watched it and can’t see it. I just can’t see it. “Scott has been flung around. He was put in a headlock and thrown to the floor. When you watch it back, it is wrong. “And the other frustration is, in such a massive game with the whole world watching, and given what happened in the previous two Old Firm matches, why make such a big decision if you aren’t sure of it?” With the pressure building around the Celtic manager, Mowbray insisted that he would be there for the long term at the club. There are various rumours doing the rounds that Mowbray will quit Celtic in the summer - or even be pushed - but he blankly denied such notions. Winning the Active Nation Scottish Cup, however, now seems more essential than ever to Mowbray and Celtic. “From my perspective we have to keep going, keep working with the team, keep building it,” he added. “I see positive signs, but I also see parts of the team we still need to work with, but we will keep going. “This team has to win every season. Some seasons you do, some you don’t. Our goal at the start of every season is to win everything. We have to go and try to win our league games and see what happens. But it is there for Rangers to lose it now. “It’s the same as every year. This club has to win something, but if you don’t, do you throw everything out and start again? If you are logical, then you don’t, you buy into what you believe is going to take the club in the right direction and you keep going. “Gordon [Strachan] was very successful and won three championships, but I play a different style of football - a different type of football. I want expansive football and at times it can be like a rollercoaster. You are going to have days where you lose goals, but you will also have days of great victories and fantastic football. That’s the journey you go on.” © Ali Hannah & Soccerphile.com Tags SPL Scottish Football

FIFA have closed the door for now on using video replays in football. At its meeting in Zurich yesterday, the International Football Association Board , the committee which decides on any changes to the rules of football, announced they would not be proceeding with technology in football. "The door is closed. The decision was not to use technology at all," said Fifa's General Secretary Jerome Valcke. "Technology should not enter into the game, that was a clear statement made by the majority of the IFAB. Let's keep the game of football as it is." The IFAB , the descendant of the 1882 meeting in Manchester between representatives of the world's first four soccer nations - England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales, are now an eight-man committee comprising one representative from each of the four British nations (Northern Ireland but not the Republic) and four from the FIFA family. The English and Scottish FAs had been in favour of more technology to prevent the sort of brouhaha created by Thierry Henry's illegal handball for France's decisive goal which knocked Eire out of the World Cup. Football Association of Wales Chief Executive Jonathan Ford cited the "stop-start" nature of using replays, presumably one he knows well from rugby, as something he did not wish to enter soccer, while Irish FA boss Patrick Nelson cited "the debate, the controversy" as part of football. But the Welsh and Irish representatives sided with the four FIFA delegates, who were against video replays. The committee also kiboshed any introduction of goal-line technology to decide whether a goal had been scored or not. Two products had been considered for football - Hawk-Eye , well-known to followers of cricket and tennis, and Cairos , a chip inserted inside the ball to determine goal-line decisions. With this summer's World Cup vulnerable to another 'Hand of Henry' scandal, we are unlikely to have heard the end of this debate, that is for sure. The IFAB reconvene in May to discuss the role of the fourth official with regard to informing the referee of incidents, plus proposals to yellow-card players who stop or feint while taking a penalty kick, stopping the automatic red card for denying a goal-scoring opportunity and extending the UEFA Europa League's trial of an extra referee behind the goal to FIFA competitions from next season. (c) Sean O'Conor & Soccerphile Tags Soccer News football

The 18th season of the J. League kicks off on March 6 with a blockbuster showdown between defending champions Kashima Antlers and the league's best supported club Urawa Reds. Kashima are chasing a record fourth successive J. League crown, and they'll go into the match full of confidence having wrapped up the 2009 title with a 1-0 win over Urawa at a packed Saitama Stadium. The Reds will be itching to avenge that defeat, and coach Volker Finke has overseen plenty of changes ahead of the new campaign. Talismanic Japan international Marcus Tulio Tanaka has departed for Nagoya Grampus - replaced by young Australian defender Matthew Spiranovic, while Burkina Faso international Wilfried Sanou arrives on loan from German club 1.FC Koeln. Perhaps the most impressive arrival is former Sanfrecce Hiroshima playmaker Yosuke Kashiwagi, and there is plenty of pressure on the 22-year-old midfielder to fire Urawa into the Asian Champions League places this season. Elsewhere, Gamba Osaka take on Nagoya Grampus at Expo '70 Stadium in a rematch of the 2009 Emperor's Cup final. It's a vastly different Nagoya side that will run out in Osaka, with the Aichi outfit embarking on a spending spree in the off-season having drafted in Mitsuru Chiyotanda, Colombian midfielder Danilson and Mu Kanazaki, although the real jewel in the crown is former Urawa defender Marcus Tulio Tanaka. The round's other marquee match-up sees FC Tokyo take on neighbours Yokohama F. Marinos in front of what should be a vociferous crowd at Ajinomoto Stadium. Marinos are celebrating the return of prodigal son Shunsuke Nakamura to the Tricolore, but they face a tough test against an FC Tokyo side that has made some astute signings in the form of ex-Oita Trinita defender Masato Morishige and former Albirex Niigata midfielder Toshihiro Matsushita. In J2, the new season kicks off with a fascinating clash between Avispa Fukuoka and Ventforet Kofu on March 6, however most of the action takes place a day later. Relegated sides Kashiwa Reysol and Oita Trinita face off at Kashiwa Hitachi Stadium, while newcomers Giravanz Kitakyushu make their J. League debut away at Yokohama FC. Sagan Tosu host Consadole Sapporo in another high-profile match-up at Best Amenity Stadium, whilst fallen giants JEF United face up to life in the second tier with a testing trip to Roasso Kumamoto. Shunsuke Nakamura returns to the J. League Former Celtic midfielder Shunsuke Nakamura has returned to his former stomping ground, with the 31-year-old signing on at port city side Yokohama F. Marinos. The Japan international started his career at what was then Yokohama Marinos, and having played through the bitter merger of the city's two clubs, Nakamura subsequently embarked on a prolonged European tour. Spells at Reggina in Italy and Celtic in Scotland were followed by a less successful stint at Spanish side Espanyol, and with the World Cup finals just around the corner, Nakamura has succumbed to the lure of turning out for his home-town team once again. Japan finish Asian Cup qualifying with a win Japan finished their Asian Cup qualifying campaign with a routine 2-0 win over Bahrain in front of 38,042 fans at a packed Toyota Stadium. CSKA Moscow midfielder Keisuke Honda was the star of the show on his former home ground, although it was Shimizu S-Pulse striker Shinji Okazaki who opened the scoring midway through the first half. Honda finished proceedings with a goal deep into second half stoppage time, and the industrious midfielder did enough to suggest that he could prove a key player for Takeshi Okada's squad at the 2010 World Cup. Both teams had already guaranteed their progression to the 2011 Asian Cup finals in Qatar. Copyright © Michael Tuckerman & Soccerphile.com J. League News Tags Soccer News football

World Soccer News for week of 3/3/2010 Ozren Podnar reports Real Madrid top the earners chart According to the new ranking by Deloitte financial agency, Real Madrid are still the highest earners in world soccer and the first club clearing the 400 million euros mark. Barcelona came second with 365.9 million, edging Manchester United, the same team they beat in the last season's Champions League finals. Five more clubs register earnings in excess of 200 million euros – Bayern, Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool and Juventus. Curiously, the Turin club are commercially more successful than their superior rivals Inter and Milan, sharing nineth and tenth place. England has the most teams to the top 20, seven in all, two more than Germany. England's strength is proved by the presence of Newcastle, placed 20th in spite of playing in the second level this season. In another ranking, compiled by the University of Navarra, Barcelona and Real Madrid are the most mediatic teams in the world, while Manchester United fell from first to third after losing Cristiano Ronaldo to Madrid. The Spaniards rose from fifth to second thanks to the string of strong summer purchases that included Kaka and Benzema. Barcelona's Leo Messi tops the individual chart ahead of Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney. TOP-20 highest earners Amounts are in millions of euros 1. Real Madrid 401.4 2. Barcelona 365.9 3. Manchester United 327 4. Bayern Munich 289.5 5. Arsenal 263 6. Chelsea 242.3 7. Liverpool 217 8. Juventus 203.2 9. Inter 196,5 10. Milan 196.5 11. Hamburger 146.7 12. Roma 146.4 13. Olympique Lyon 139.6 14. Olympique Marseille 133.2 15. Tottenham 132.7 16. Schalke 04 124.5 17. Werder Bremen 114.7 18. Borussia Dortmund 103.5 19. Manchester City 102.2 20. Newcastle 101.0 Amazon.co.uk Widgets Bridge ignored Terry's hand Wayne Bridge, who preferred to quit the England team to sharing the dressing room with John Terry, ignored the Chelsea's defender as Manchester City players shook hands with their hosts at Stamford Bridge. The two players became the center of attention after Terry had an affair with Bridge's former fiance, French underwear model, Vanessa Perroncel. After shaking hands with the referees, Bridge came to his one-time friend, gave him a quick look and proceeded to greet other Chelsea players. The second part of Bridge's revenge came during the game, as City ran riot at Stamford Bridge and defeated the Blues 2-4, ironically allowing Manchester United to come within one point of the leaders Chelsea. Zidane: Not apologizing to Materazzi Legendary French player Zinedine Zidane reminisced about the famous head-butting episode from the last World Cup and proclaimed he would never apologize Marco Materazzi for knocking him down in Berlin. "I would prefer to die than asking forgiveness from that bad man," said Zidane to the Spanish El Pais daily. "Of course I'm sorry for what happened, but apologizing would equal admitting what he did was normal. And for me it wasn't normal." Materazzi insulted Zidane by mentioning his sister in an offensive context, which Zizou could not stand. "If that had been Kaka, a normal guy and a good person, of course I would have apologized. But not to Materazzi. If i did that, I'd show disrespect to myself and the people I carry in my heart," added the Frenchman. Curiously, the Italian provocateur later said he did not mean to offend Zidane's sister and that in fact he had no idea Zizou had one, but this admission made no difference to the best French player in the last two decades. Atletico's coach calls his assistant 86 times during a game After being sent off in the match at Almeria ten days ago, Atletico Madrid's Quique Sanchez Flores was banned from coaching his team against Valencia on Sunday. Having opted to view the game on a TV set in the dressing room, he decided to stay in touch with his assistants on Atletico's bench. Quique used his mobile phone to call the goalkeepers' coach Emilio Alvarez, whose duty was to convey the orders to the assistant coach Francisco Escriba. As Alvarez confessed to Canal+, Quique called him 86 times during the game, won by Atletico 4-1. "I counted 34 calls during the first half and 52 more in the second half for a total of 86 brief calls, each in the duration of five to ten seconds," said Alvarez. Among the concise orders given by Quique was the one to substitute the injured Sergio Aguero immediately. Still, Escriba could not arrange for a quick substitution so Aguero was given time to score a goal before he was replaced. Nakata auctions off his boots for Haiti The former Japanese skipper Hidetoshi Nakata auctioned off the boots used against Croatia during the 2006 World Cup in order to rally funds for the victims of the Haiti earthquake. The retired midfielder collected over a million euros for the boots in an online auction for the 300,000 thousand casualties of the January 12th quake that devastated the Caribbean nation. The game against Croatia ended goalless and after the next match against Brazil, who smashed Japan 4-1, a tearful Nakata announced his surprising retirement. © Soccerphile.com Previous world soccer news Tags Soccer News football

The absence of a genuine goalscorer is tempting Australia coach Pim Verbeek into including rookie 18-year-old left winger Tommy Oar in his World Cup 23. The cards could be falling perfectly for the diminutive Oar, who only turned 18 in December but who scooped the A-League young player-of-the-year gong last month and made his Socceroos debut on Wednesday night in his hometown. Oar's dazzling performance on the left flank caught the eye as Australia limped into the 2011 Asian Cup finals with a lifeless victory over Indonesia in Brisbane, but the usually coy Verbeek's reluctance to play down his chances of making the World Cup in June took everyone by surprise. "I wish I could keep the pressure down but I must be honest, I thought he played a fantastic game," the Dutch coach beamed after the win. "I can say a few things about areas he can improve but I think he was fantastic." Although the sight of Oar taking the fight to the Indonesians was a welcome one, it again only served to reemphasise Verbeek's most pressing problem: who will score Australia's goals in South Africa. Japan-based targetman Josh Kennedy, a 2006 World Cup squad member, has all the physical attributes but has found the target just six times in 17 appearances after another duck in Brisbane as the side's lone striker. Scott McDonald is yet to open his account in 15 Socceroos internationals and is currently out of favour with Verbeek. The former Celtic forward is no certainty to be included and needs to get among the goals with Middlesbrough to prove he's worth a chance. In the pecking order after Kennedy and McDonald is a raft of wildcards including talented Bruce Djite (no goals in eight appearances) and twice-capped Nikita Rukavytsya. The latter doesn’t even have his thumbnail picture on the official Football Australia website, but Verbeek is certain to have noticed Rukavytsya banging them in for Belgium top flight side KSV Roeselare since his January loan move. All that has left renaissance man Harry Kewell seemingly in pole position to occupy an unfamiliar lone frontman position for the Group D opener against Germany. Kewell is currently sidelined with a groin problem, but has grown in stature since leaving behind a Premier League career 18 months ago. And it is Verbeek's inclination to deploy Kewell in attack which might create a vacancy on the left for Oar. The teenager's dramatic rise to the fringes of the World Cup is very much a consequence of Verbeek's attacking conundrum rather than a clamour for the Dutchman to take a him to South Africa. Oar is already on the verge of leaving the A-League with a host of Dutch heavyweights rumoured to be circling. And he's also drawn numerous comparisons with the teenage Kewell, who received his first Socceroos cap in the 1996 friendly against Chile aged 17 years and seven months, admitting that he models his game on the Galatasaray star. But, as Verbeek also noted, shining against the 137th-ranked Indonesians on home turf is a world away from dazzling against the Germans. The Dutchman said: "Let's try to keep it normal for the boy. Please don't mention him as the next Harry Kewell. Let the boy just develop. He had a great year and it will be very difficult to stay on the same level." Oar also faces stiff competition. Holland-based David Carney looks certain to be included as an option for left-back or further forward on that flank, while Verbeek favourite Dario Vidosic can also operate there as well as anywhere across midfield and attack. Copyright © Marc Fox and Soccerphile.com Tags Soccer News football

Fifa's World Rankings for March are out. Spain stay in top spot in this month's Fifa world rankings. Brazil are second followed by the Netherlands, Italy and Germany. Spain and Brazil are among the favorites to win the World Cup next summer. England are in 8th place. Argentina are 9th. Greece squeezed into the top ten. France are in 7th. Egypt is the highest African team in 17th. The USA fell to 18th spot. 1 Spain 2 Brazil 3 Netherlands 4 Italy 5 Germany 6 Portugal 7 France 8 England 9 Argentina 10 Greece 11 Croatia 12 Russia 13 Serbia 14 Chile 15 Mexico 16 Switzerland 17 Egypt 18 USA 19 Uruguay 20 Cameroon Full world rankings Previous month's Fifa World Rankings Bet with Bet 365 Soccer betting tips Soccer Books & DVDs Tags Soccer News soccer football fifa

Brazil 2:0 Republic of Ireland Emirates Stadium, London 40,000 Fabio Capello was in the stands at Arsenal tonight, one of no doubt an army of World Cup team spies on hand to watch the South American giants and joint favourites for the World Cup. The England coach will have left Ashburton Grove pondering just what his team can do in South Africa to defeat what, along with Spain, is the most impressive team going into the tournament. Ireland , in their first outing since the trauma of Thierry Henry's handball in Paris wrecked their African dream, were the fall guys for the samba storm. The Irish started confidently though and were unlucky not to steal the lead when Julio Cesar made a fingertip save to deny Kevin Doyle a quarter of an hour in. Robbie Keane, back from injury, and Damien Duff on the left were real irritants to Brazil 's muscular back four. There are worse teams than Ireland who will be in South Africa this summer, and few better fans. For Giovanni Trapattoni, who was not his usual jolly self post-match following a sobering evening, there is a manageable Euro 2012 qualifying group to look forward to, with Russia and Slovakia the main challengers. Ireland had battled well from the off, but with a minute left until the interval, disaster struck as Robinho received a pass from Maicon in what looked a decidedly offside position on the right wing. No flag appeared and the Santos star's whipped-in cross was tragically diverted by Keith Andrews's outstretched leg past his own goalkeeper to give Brazil the interval advantage. After the break, the South Americans were just too hot to handle, driving a fiery wedge down the middle of the Irish half, with Kaka once more the prime instigator. Robinho seemed to be enjoying himself immensely on his return to England, scoring one, missing a sitter and watching another in the net disallowed for offside. For a while the Irish looked like whipping boys and a rout was even on the cards. Daniel Alves came on and hit the side netting with his first foray when he might have scored, while substitute striker Grafite , who plays in Germany for Wolfsburg, was also a real danger in attack. Michel Bastos , in only his third appearance for his country, gave an assured performance with his left-sided link play and could yet be an unheralded star in South Africa. The killer second arrived in the 76th minute when a flowing forward charge involving Kaka and Grafite let Robinho slot coolly under Shay Given with a right-footed finish. The Emirates was only two-thirds full, thanks to tickets priced more than England v Egypt the following night, no doubt to pay for this stop on 'Brazil's World Tour'. That said, the 40,000 present were largely pro-Brazil and generated some noise once the selecao really got into their stride after the break. On tonight's showing, Brazil look likely contenders for the crown in South Africa, with perhaps only Spain capable of upsetting them when they are on top form. Dunga 's pragmatic approach found room for Adriano as the main striker tonight in Luis Fabiano 's injured absence, but the former World Cup winner apparently has shut the door to another veteran hero - Ronaldinho . Repeated questions at the press conference afterwards elicited the same response - that every player has had their chance to impress and there are no practice games left to stake a claim. "We have the team already built and decided," Dunga told journalists. Ditto no entry for Milan teammate Alexandre Pato , frozen out but aged only 20, nine years Ronaldinho's junior and with years left in him. Ronaldinho's absence in South Africa will disappoint many a fan and marketing man but the determination in Dunga's face was evident. "We have been working three and a half years." Republic of Ireland: Given, Kelly, St. Ledger, McShane, Kilbane, Lawrence (McCarthy 69), Whelan (Gibson 56), Andrews, Duff (McGeady 56), Doyle (Best 78), Keane. Subs Not Used: Westwood, Brian Murphy, Foley, Wilson, Stokes, Cunningham, Long.

Wednesday is the biggest day in terms of the 2010 World Cup since the draw for the tournament was made on December 4 in Cape Town. 26 of the 32 teams that will do battle in South Africa in June are involved with preparation matches, many of which face each other. South Korea are no exception and take on fellow qualifiers Ivory Coast in London. The English capital is becoming a second home for the Taeguk Warriors. Not only is it a convenient base for coach Huh Jung-moo’s European stars, the big-name European and African teams are happier to play South Korea in London than make the long journey to East Asia. Ivory Coast is considered to be the strongest of the African contingent at the World Cup which starts in June – the so-called ‘six-pack’. Didier Drogba is considered to be the best African striker and one of the best in the world. That is another benefit of playing in London. Such stars are less likely to pick up mysterious injuries and pull out of exhibition games in far-flung locales. This is often to the relief, or, if you are cynical, due to the suggestion of club coaches who don’t want their best players travelling around the world at a crucial stage of the domestic season. For Drogba, it won’t be a problem. He plays his club football for West London club Chelsea. Ivory Coast meets Korea just down the road from Chelsea’s stadium at the compact Loftus Road home of Queens Park Rangers. Much attention in Seoul will be focused on how Korea’s delicate defense copes with the powerful Ivorian. A 3-0 defeat at the hands of China last month saw coach Huh Jung-moo blasted by fans after a chaotic performance at the back. Huh has selected largely the same defenders for the much tougher test on offer on Wednesday and the likes of Cho Yong-hyong and Kwak Tae-hwi have much to prove. Kang Min-soo is spared the test as he is injured. A good performance against Drogba will go a long way to silencing their critics but it may not silence the rest of the ‘Elephants’. Drogba’s Chelsea team-mate Salomon Kalou needs to be watched though the tricky Gervinho is injured. Elsewhere in the ranks, the African team boasts players who play for the likes of Arsenal, Sevilla, Manchester City, Stuttgart and world and European champions Barcelona. Korea is not without European stars. Park Ji-sung of Manchester United will captain the team and will line up with Bolton Wanderers winger Lee Chung-yong and Celtic’s Ki Sung-yong. AS Monaco striker Park Chu-young, who has been in fine form this season and has established himself as one of the leading attackers in the French league, is injured. As expected, Huh called 2002 and 2006 hero Ahn Jung-hwan . The striker, now 34, hasn’t featured for the national team since June 2008 but is now back in the national team set-up. “Ahn Jung-hwan has the experience and ability we need and performed well in the past two World Cups,” Huh said as the squad was announced last week. “I think he’s capable of making an impact for the team even if he plays for a short period of time on the pitch.” “With the World Cup in South Africa around the corner, I chose the players in their best form at the moment,” Huh explained. “Although there are other factors like injury and in some positions, I picked most competitive players ahead of the Finals.” For both teams, the attractions of playing each other are obvious. Ivory Coast has been placed in ‘The Group of Death’ in South Africa. This may mean tough tests against Brazil and Portugal but it also means a game against North Korea that must be won if a place is to be had in the second round. The African team assumes, not unreasonably, that the best way to practice playing against North Korea is to play against South Korea. For coach Huh, it is all about Nigeria. South Korea has tended to struggle against powerful and skilful African teams in the past and none fits that description better than Ivory Coast. Nigeria is the last team that South Korea faces after Greece and Argentina. It could be a crucial game in Durban and it is one that could be influenced by what happens in London on Wednesday evening. Tags Soccer News football